We finally have time for our dream vacation!
Oct 11th, 2011, 02:35 PM
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We finally have time for our dream vacation!
My husband and I have gone to Europe twice before:
The first trip was us shoving in as many of the sights into the itinerary as we could. We flew into Munich, visited Paris, Berlin, Dresden, stopped in Prague on our way to Vienna, then went to Rome and flew back out of Munich. We enjoyed the quick pace, and pushed through the jet lag to see the things we wanted to in each city.
The second trip was a bit more focused. We flew into Nice, went directly to Interlakken, spent time in Grindelwald, then went to see the castle in Neuchwanstein before taking a train to Venice, then back to Nice.
As you can see, we like to travel quickly, but have started to understand the value in just BEING someplace and enjoying the culture of that place. We generally like being in large cities, visiting art galleries and spending the evening out at pubs getting to know people. We have a very good friend that we travel with who lives in Germany, and will travel with us, staying at his friends' places. We don't mind paying for a hotel, but we like to stay somewhere that helps you get to know others.
My question is this: We are planning a month long trip to Europe this May. As the one responsible for planning this trip, I want to have a much better idea of places in Europe that will fit our criteria. I want to see famous things, eat good food, and get to know the world from another perspective (by meeting people!).
Do you have any suggestions of places that would fit our description? Since we've been twice before, we've already visited the places that were in our "must visit" list. Help me fall in love with new destinations!
Thanks for all of your help, and if there's something I've left out that would help you answer my query, please let me know!
-Michelle
The first trip was us shoving in as many of the sights into the itinerary as we could. We flew into Munich, visited Paris, Berlin, Dresden, stopped in Prague on our way to Vienna, then went to Rome and flew back out of Munich. We enjoyed the quick pace, and pushed through the jet lag to see the things we wanted to in each city.
The second trip was a bit more focused. We flew into Nice, went directly to Interlakken, spent time in Grindelwald, then went to see the castle in Neuchwanstein before taking a train to Venice, then back to Nice.
As you can see, we like to travel quickly, but have started to understand the value in just BEING someplace and enjoying the culture of that place. We generally like being in large cities, visiting art galleries and spending the evening out at pubs getting to know people. We have a very good friend that we travel with who lives in Germany, and will travel with us, staying at his friends' places. We don't mind paying for a hotel, but we like to stay somewhere that helps you get to know others.
My question is this: We are planning a month long trip to Europe this May. As the one responsible for planning this trip, I want to have a much better idea of places in Europe that will fit our criteria. I want to see famous things, eat good food, and get to know the world from another perspective (by meeting people!).
Do you have any suggestions of places that would fit our description? Since we've been twice before, we've already visited the places that were in our "must visit" list. Help me fall in love with new destinations!
Thanks for all of your help, and if there's something I've left out that would help you answer my query, please let me know!
-Michelle
Oct 11th, 2011, 04:10 PM
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You wrote:
"We have a very good friend that we travel with who lives in Germany, and will travel with us, staying at his friends' places"
If I'm understanding you correctly, doesn't that sort of fix your itinerary, or does your friend have friends throughout Europe?
You also wrote:
"We don't mind paying for a hotel, but we like to stay somewhere that helps you get to know others"
and
"I want to see famous things, eat good food, and get to know the world from another perspective (by meeting people!)."
If you go to famous tourist destinations, you will meet other tourists. If you stay in hotels instead of b&bs run by families, you will meet employees, not families.
To me, if you want to know the world from another perspective, you cannot begin to understand the world unless you go to Athens. There is no "Europe" without the mystery and miracle of what occurred in Athens. Without Athens, there is no Western "civiilisation." There is just a bunch of warring, stupid tribes. The ideals of Athens were lost for many a century in Europe, and "reborn" in the Renaissance of italy, and born again in the birth of America. But it is extremely difficult to understand the power of Athenian ideas and the world we all actually live in today with its Wall Street Occupiers and Obama as President without seeing how humanist ideals took shape in Athens. The remains of the Acropolis and its Museum are extraordinarily illuminating and deeply moving sights.
I also think it is impossible to get a new perspective beyond one's parochial education without seeing something of the tremendous cosmopolitan exchange of ideas in the Mediterranean, and I think Spain holds great fascination in this regard. The Alhambra, the mosque at Cordoba, the beautiful multicultural life of Toledo - this is very thought provoking I think.
It has become a travel fashion to just wander around Europe aimlessly, shopping and "soaking up" some content-free set of picturesque medieval towns and scenic beauties -- a coastline here, towering mountains there. It is so profitable, it really takes some doing to get off that tourist corridor and get a true perspective on what the intellectual and commercial life of today's Europe is, the outgrowth of what is has been since Athens.
I have nothing against vacationing in Europe. But if you want a new perspective, Europe is filled with the important and beautiful evidence of its own formation and history, and it can make for a fascinating journey, if when you don't come home with the usual snapshots and tableware.
"We have a very good friend that we travel with who lives in Germany, and will travel with us, staying at his friends' places"
If I'm understanding you correctly, doesn't that sort of fix your itinerary, or does your friend have friends throughout Europe?
You also wrote:
"We don't mind paying for a hotel, but we like to stay somewhere that helps you get to know others"
and
"I want to see famous things, eat good food, and get to know the world from another perspective (by meeting people!)."
If you go to famous tourist destinations, you will meet other tourists. If you stay in hotels instead of b&bs run by families, you will meet employees, not families.
To me, if you want to know the world from another perspective, you cannot begin to understand the world unless you go to Athens. There is no "Europe" without the mystery and miracle of what occurred in Athens. Without Athens, there is no Western "civiilisation." There is just a bunch of warring, stupid tribes. The ideals of Athens were lost for many a century in Europe, and "reborn" in the Renaissance of italy, and born again in the birth of America. But it is extremely difficult to understand the power of Athenian ideas and the world we all actually live in today with its Wall Street Occupiers and Obama as President without seeing how humanist ideals took shape in Athens. The remains of the Acropolis and its Museum are extraordinarily illuminating and deeply moving sights.
I also think it is impossible to get a new perspective beyond one's parochial education without seeing something of the tremendous cosmopolitan exchange of ideas in the Mediterranean, and I think Spain holds great fascination in this regard. The Alhambra, the mosque at Cordoba, the beautiful multicultural life of Toledo - this is very thought provoking I think.
It has become a travel fashion to just wander around Europe aimlessly, shopping and "soaking up" some content-free set of picturesque medieval towns and scenic beauties -- a coastline here, towering mountains there. It is so profitable, it really takes some doing to get off that tourist corridor and get a true perspective on what the intellectual and commercial life of today's Europe is, the outgrowth of what is has been since Athens.
I have nothing against vacationing in Europe. But if you want a new perspective, Europe is filled with the important and beautiful evidence of its own formation and history, and it can make for a fascinating journey, if when you don't come home with the usual snapshots and tableware.
Oct 11th, 2011, 04:32 PM
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@zeppole
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer!
Regarding our friend in Europe- it doesn't fix our itinerary. He just always happens to know someone we could stay with wherever we decide to go. Our best times in Europe have been going to a pub with our host and discussing world issues with them and their friends. I understand that one cannot get an idea of the world by going from hostel to hostel!
You're ideas are very helpful! Greece is now on my list and so is Spain! Your reasoning for those places are exactly what I was looking for. We loved Rome because it had the same importance in the development of culture.
Thanks again for your reply!
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer!
Regarding our friend in Europe- it doesn't fix our itinerary. He just always happens to know someone we could stay with wherever we decide to go. Our best times in Europe have been going to a pub with our host and discussing world issues with them and their friends. I understand that one cannot get an idea of the world by going from hostel to hostel!
You're ideas are very helpful! Greece is now on my list and so is Spain! Your reasoning for those places are exactly what I was looking for. We loved Rome because it had the same importance in the development of culture.
Thanks again for your reply!
Oct 11th, 2011, 05:11 PM
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That's an interesting comment from Zeppole - a new slant on the "where should we go" perennial question.
It means that you'll go home with a bunch of things that you've learned, rather than just a bunch of photos of things that you've seen.
Spain is interesting - a country once occupied by Islam, "liberated" by crusaders.
It means that you'll go home with a bunch of things that you've learned, rather than just a bunch of photos of things that you've seen.
Spain is interesting - a country once occupied by Islam, "liberated" by crusaders.
Oct 11th, 2011, 09:21 PM
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Zeppole, I really loved your answer this time. In keeping with the suggestion of Athens, consider Sicily and Spain. OTOH, England (as do many other places) certainly has a lot to offer historically if you want to delve into it more than superficially.
Oct 13th, 2011, 04:25 AM
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Glad I was such a hit.
Everywhere you go in Europe has a tremendous history to explore, but so much emanated from Greece and the Mediterranean, I think starting there helps make sense of the rest of it. Plus, these are beautiful places that have managed to hold onto much of their traditional life in an everyday practice, not just in museums or castles-you-enter-for-pay, while at the same time being very much a part of the modern global consumer world. It's amazing how many northern European thinkers and writers spent part of their education in Greece or the Mediterranean, and how much they wanted to bring classic ideals back home with them. Classic education has disappeared as an ideal in America, but for travelers to Europe, I think it can be very exciting.
Everywhere you go in Europe has a tremendous history to explore, but so much emanated from Greece and the Mediterranean, I think starting there helps make sense of the rest of it. Plus, these are beautiful places that have managed to hold onto much of their traditional life in an everyday practice, not just in museums or castles-you-enter-for-pay, while at the same time being very much a part of the modern global consumer world. It's amazing how many northern European thinkers and writers spent part of their education in Greece or the Mediterranean, and how much they wanted to bring classic ideals back home with them. Classic education has disappeared as an ideal in America, but for travelers to Europe, I think it can be very exciting.
Oct 13th, 2011, 05:24 AM
#10
Spain is interesting - a country once occupied by Islam, "liberated" by crusaders.
Far more interesting than that even in the most simple analysis, a major part of the Roman Empire, with strong Jewish, Punician and Visigothic foundations, then christian, then Islamic then christian in a war over some 350 years. The moment the Christians finished taking back over they sent all the nastiest people to find the Americas (1492 is the date for the end of the re-conquest and the discovery of Dominica), then they expelled the Jews and Islamics, violent dislike of protestants (long period where Protestants had to be buried below the low water mark), invasion by the french and freedom brought by the protestant English and that only gets us to about 1900. Then Franco
And all this cuts out the Portugeuse which is another whole story
Far more interesting than that even in the most simple analysis, a major part of the Roman Empire, with strong Jewish, Punician and Visigothic foundations, then christian, then Islamic then christian in a war over some 350 years. The moment the Christians finished taking back over they sent all the nastiest people to find the Americas (1492 is the date for the end of the re-conquest and the discovery of Dominica), then they expelled the Jews and Islamics, violent dislike of protestants (long period where Protestants had to be buried below the low water mark), invasion by the french and freedom brought by the protestant English and that only gets us to about 1900. Then Franco
And all this cuts out the Portugeuse which is another whole story
